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The Demerara rebellion of 1823 was an uprising involving more than 10,000 slaves that took place in the Crown colony of Demerara-Essequibo (now part of Guyana). The rebellion, which took place on 18 August 1823 and lasted for two days, was led by slaves with the highest status. In part they were reacting to poor treatment and a desire for freedom; in addition, there was a widespread, mistaken belief that Parliament had passed a law for emancipation, but it was being withheld by the colonial rulers. Instigated chiefly by Jack Gladstone, a slave at "Success" plantation, the rebellion also involved his father, Quamina, and other senior members of their church group. Its English pastor, John Smith, was implicated. The largely non-violent rebellion was brutally crushed by the colonists under governor John Murray. They killed many slaves: estimates of the toll from fighting range from 100 to 250. After the insurrection was put down, the government sentenced another 45 men to death, and 27 were executed. The executed slaves' bodies were displayed in public for months afterwards as a deterrent to others. Jack was deported to the island of Saint Lucia after the rebellion following a clemency plea by Sir John Gladstone, the owner of "Success" plantation. John Smith, who had been court-martialed and was awaiting news of his appeal against a death sentence, died a martyr for the abolitionist cause. News of Smith's death strengthened the abolitionist movement in Britain. Quamina, who is thought to have been the actual leader of the rebellion, was declared a national hero after Guyana's independence. Streets and monuments have been dedicated to him in the capital of Georgetown, Guyana. == Context == Demerara was first colonised by the Dutch in the 17th century under the auspices of the Dutch West India Company (DWIC). The economy, initially based on trade, began to be superseded in the 18th century by sugar cane cultivation on large plantations. The Demerara region was opened to settlement in 1746, and new opportunities attracted British settlers from nearby Barbados. By 1760, they had become the largest contingent in Demerara; the 1762 business registers showed that 34 of 93 plantations owned by Englishmen. The British were a major external threat to Dutch control over the colonies from 1781 until 1796, when Britain obtained ''de facto'' control. Following a raid by privateers in February 1781, British occupation lasted until January 1782, when the island was recaptured by the French, then allied with the Dutch. The British transferred rule of Demerara to the Dutch in 1802 under the terms of the Peace of Amiens, but took back control of it a year later. In 1812, the British merged Demerara and Essequibo into the colony of Demerara-Essequibo. The colonies were ceded to Britain by treaty between the Netherlands and Britain on 13 August 1814. Stabroek, as the colony's capital was known under the Dutch, was renamed as Georgetown in 1812. The colonial powers appointed a governor to rule in their stead, and the local legislation was decided on by a Court of Policy. The mainstay of its economy was sugar, grown on cane plantations worked by slaves. The sale of the crop in Britain enjoyed preferential terms. There were 2,571 declared slaves working on 68 plantations in Essequibo, and 1,648 slaves in Demerara in 1762. These numbers were known to be much understated, as the slave headcount was the basis of taxation. By 1769, there were 3,986 declared slaves for Essequibo's 92 plantations and 5,967 for Demerara's 206 plantations. The slave labour was in short supply and expensive due to the trading monopoly of the DWIC, and smuggling from Barbados was rife. Dutch colonists ensured white dominance over their growing slave population through the collaboration of indigenous natives, who strongly resisted white domination but could also be relied upon to take up arms against any Spanish incursions. When slaves rose up in Berbice in 1763, natives blocked the border to prevent the disruption from spreading into Demerara. Rapid expansion of plantations in the 19th century increased demand for African slaves at a time when supplies were reduced. The supply shortage of labour for production was exacerbated by the British abolition of trade in slaves in the Slave Trade Act 1807. The population consisted of 2,500 whites, 2,500 freed blacks, and 77,000 slaves. Ethnically, there were 34,462 African-born as against 39,956 "creole Negroes" by 1823 in Demerara and Essequibo. Treatment of slaves were markedly different from owner to owner, and from plantation to plantation. Plantations managed by agents and attorneys for absentee owners were common. Caucasian owners and managers were prevalent, and there were very few mixed-race "mulattoes" who advanced to become managers and owners. Lower-class whites and coloureds were considered "superior", giving them access to skilled work. Blacks who performed skilled work, or worked within households and enjoyed greater autonomy, were regarded as having higher-status than other slaves. Slaves who toiled in the fields would work under drivers also slaves, but who had delegated authority of plantation overseers. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Demerara rebellion of 1823」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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